For more than a thousand years, there was no name for the religion of the Japanese people: it was simply the Japanese way and there was little distinction between religion and daily life. Then, a thousand years after it originated in northern India, a new religion known as Buddhism began to appear in Japan. In order to distinguish the new imported religion—the Buddha way (butsu-do)—from the aboriginal Japanese religion, the term Shinto—The Way of the Spirits—was introduced.
Shinto is as old as Japan itself. There is no single founding figure, nor is there a particular point in time when the religion was created. There are some who feel that the religion began when the people were still living on the Asian mainland, before their migration to the islands. Shinto is deeply rooted in Japanese culture and it is difficult to separate the two.
The core belief system of Shinto is animistic: there are spirits that live in natural phenomena including the sun, water, fire, and mountains. The kami are sacred spirits which are important to life. Through offerings and rituals to these spirits, individuals are able to attain and maintain purity.
Shinto also involves the veneration of ancestors. Humans become kami after they die and are thus revered by their families as ancestral kami. The Sun Goddess Amaterasu is the most important kami in Shinto and the Japanese emperors are descended from her.
Shinto shrines, known as jinja, are dedicated to one or more kami. The jinja is both a place of worship and the place where the kami live. The entrance to the shrine is marked by torii gates and a pair of guardian dogs or lions (komainu). The border between the secular and sacred is marked with the shimenawa, a rope made of rice straw. This is placed above the entrance to the hall.
As individuals approach the sacred area, they cleanse their hands and mouths with water. The left hand is washed first, then the right, then the mouth is rinsed.
Shrine visitors may write their wishes on ema (wooden plates) and leave them at the shrine so that the kami will act upon them.
Many Shinto shrines and temples also function for divination. Fortune telling paper slips (omikuji) contain predictions which range from great good luck (daikichi) to great bad luck (daikyo).
Shinto emphasizes rituals and moral standards. Ceremonies are held to bless babies, children, weddings, and the start of new enterprises. There are also many local festivals (matsuri) as most of the shrines have their own festivals. Most festivals are held annually and celebrate the shrine’s kami, or a seasonal or historic event.